Checker cooler



March 1, 1949. A, P R A 2,463,421

CHECKER COOLER Filed July 18, 1947 Z Fa- FIEE- i! 11I` INVENTORI HIS ATTRNEY.

Patentd Mar. I 1949 UNITED STA'I 'ES P'FEN'F I oreez CHECKER COOLER Arnold A. Purola, Girard, Ohio Application July 18, 1947, Serial No. '761,860

3 Claims. 1

This invention relates to apparatus for cooling checker brick and more particularly to cooling checker bricks which are to be removed from the checker chamber of an open hearth furnace.

In the operation of open hearth furnaces the fiues in the checker brick become clogged after a period of time and the bricks themselves deteriorate to an extent that they must be replaced with new brick. This is often done when the entire furnace is being rebuilt. Before the rebuilding, the old brickwork of the furnace must be torn out and the greater part of the time required for the tearing down of the furnace is in the checker chambers and flue alleys. When the furnace is shut down, temperatures in the checker chambers average between 1400 F. and 1800 F. so that the temperature must be considerably decreased before the workmen can start removing the checker brick. Previous to my invention this cooling was by means of a large high pressure water line which was directed upon the Checker brick until they were cooled sufiiciently to permit their removal. The time required for reducing the temperature sufciently to allow workers to start removing brick was approximately 24 hours and approximately 96 man hours were required for the cooling operation.

It is an object of my invention to provide a Checker cooler which will greatly decrease the amount of time necessary to cool the Checker brick.

Another object is to provide a Checker cooler which will greatly decrease the labor cost in cooling the brick.

These and other objects will be more fully apparent after referring to the following specification and attached drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of the Checker cooler in place in a checker chamber;

Figure 2 is a View taken on the line II-II of Figure 1;

,Figura 3 is a view taken on the line III-III of Figure 2; and

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional View of the sprinkler pipe.

Referring more particularly to the drawings the reference numeral 2 indicates a checker flue having an opening 4 at one end thereof and a plurality of checker brick 6 in its lower part. The checker bricks are provided with the usual openings through which the hot gases and air pass alternately in the usual manner. The apparatus of my invention includes two substantially parallel pipes 8 and lil which are supported at some convenient height above the checker brick 6 by means of a skid !2 which rests on top of the checker brick. The rpipes 8 and lil are bent toward each other at one end thereof and are connected to a Y-tting !4. A shortlength of pipe !6 is also connected to the Y-fitting M and is provided with a union !8 to which is connected a source of water. The ends of the pipes 8 and I& opposite the fitting M are provided with removable plugs 20 to permit easy' cleaning of the pipes 8 and lfl. During the initialstages of the cooling operation the cooling apparatus is subjected to considerable amount of heat, and, therefore, a reinforcing strip of metal 22 is welded along the top of each pipe 8 and IO. The pipes 8 and ID are held in spaced-apart relationship by means of metal bracing strips 24 welded to the pipes at spaced-apart intervals. The skids |2 are built between two of the braces 24 approximately at the center of the pipes 8 and te. The' skids !2 consist of runners 26 reinforced by braces 28. The pipes 8 and n have a plurality of holes 35 in the lower portion having the desired size and spacing to give the required sprayx eIect 32.

In operation the sprinkler is picked up manually and slid on the runners 26 into the Checker chamber through the opening 4, the runners being of suficient length to distribute the load over a considerable area of the checker brick. A high pressure water line 34 is' then connected to the union !8 and the water turned on, thus causing tiny sprays to blanket the entire chamber. This results in a maximum rate of cooling since the water evaporates quickly and the velocity of the hot air currents rising from the lower part of the chamber is increased. By the use of this apperatus the cooling period is reduced iron-1 24 hours to approximately 8 hours and the number of man hours required is reduced to approximately Due to the more uniform cooling, the man hours required for removing the checker brick and cleaning the flue alleys is also reduced.

While one embodiment of my invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent that other adaptations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A checker cooler for cooling the brick in a checker chamber which comprises 'a plurality of pipes extending substantially the length of the chamber and having openings in the lower portion thereof, and a skid fastened to said pipes and extending downwardly therefrom, said skid to distribute the load of said cooler over a considerabe area of the checker brick.

2. A Checker cooler for cooling the brick in a Checker chamber which comprises a piurality of pipes extending substantially the length of the chember and having openings in the lower poi'- tion thereof, braces fastened to and extending between the pipes at spaced intervais, runners extending between and fastened to a pair of said braces approximately at the center of the cooler, said runners extending downwardly from the braces and having an elongated portion extending substantially parallel to said pipes, said eiongated portion being adapted to rest on said Checker brick.

3. A Checker cooler for cooling the brick in a Checker chamber which comprises a piurality of pipes extending substantially the length of the chamber and having openings in the lower -portion thereof, a reinforcing strip of metal weided along the top of each pipe, braces fastened to and extending between the pipes at spaced intervals, runners extending between and fastened to a pair of said braces app'oximately at the center of the cooler, said runners extending downwardly from the braces and having an elongated portion extending substantially parallel to said pipes, said elongated portion being adapted to rest on said Checker brick.

ARNOLD A. PUROLA.

No references cited. 

